Anglo American partners in food initiative to help struggling Bowen Basin families
Bowen Basin families are living pay cheque to pay cheque with some children forced to go to school hungry because there is not enough food. Here’s how one major mining company is helping.
Mackay
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Families are living pay cheque to pay cheque with some children forced to go to school hungry because there is not enough food as the cost of living crisis hits Bowen Basin communities hard.
“People may not realise Moranbah has a large population of families doing it really tough. Whether that be working families or non-working families, there are a lot of students whose families don’t have the resources to get food on the table every single day,” Moranbah State School principal Anthony Edwards said.
To help ease the burden mining giant Anglo American has partnered with Emergency and Long-Term Accommodation Moranbah to the tune of $158,000 for two years to help provide emergency food relief to families and individuals in crisis across the Isaac region.
The Food for Thought Program ensures school students have received 65 breakfasts and lunches, delivered daily to Moranbah State School, Moranbah East State School, Moranbah High School and Coppabella State School.
“If a child arrives at school and they haven’t eaten, they can grab something to eat (through the Food for Thought Program) and be in class on time like their peers, so they can have the same experience throughout the day – eating alongside everybody else, playing alongside everybody else and learning alongside everybody else,” Mr Edwards said.
“There are a lot of families who, through shame or embarrassment, may not want to send their kids to school, but because this program is accessible to anybody – there are some students who may access it just because they forgot their lunch that day – there’s no stigma attached to it.”
And under ELAM’s Community Pantry initiative, community members can visit Moranbah Youth and Community Centre to collect pantry goods free-of-charge, a service that is supplemented by a click-and-collect order for fresh produce, dairy products, meat, personal hygiene items and baby goods.
ELAM manager Tracy Chapman said the increasing cost of living was adding further pressure to families and individuals who were already struggling to make ends meet.
“ELAM has experienced a significant demand for emergency relief over the past 12 months … most of our clients are living from pay to pay after using their savings,” Ms Chapman said.
“Christmas adds extra strain on an already stretched budget and, in some cases, people may have to skip gifts all together.”
Ms Chapman said Anglo American employees were also banding together to collect non-perishable items to donate to the Community Pantry initiative.
Donation bins have been installed at Anglo American’s Moranbah North and Grosvenor mines to collect staff donations.
This partnership brings the mining giant’s total investment in Moranbah’s social services sector to $621,000 over two years and complements its existing $463,000 mental health partnership with Moranbah and District Support Services.
Anglo American Australia chief executive officer Dan van der Westhuizen said ELAM’s mission “to empower Moranbah’s most vulnerable residents to achieve independence” aligned with the company’s objective to improve liveability “in the areas where we operate”.
“We’ve seen the benefits of ELAM’s support services in the community, which includes the provision of crisis accommodation, emergency relief support and youth services, and are delighted to partner with ELAM to build a more sustainable future for all Moranbah residents,” he said.
“We hope the Community Pantry means every family can have a memorable Christmas no matter their circumstances.”
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